Four Times Alice Found Ace and One Time Ace Found Alice
by ClaireStanfield-Vino
Summary: High School AU. Whether it's getting lost in an easy-to-navigate school or taking a game of hide-and-seek too far, Ace was always difficult to find. For better or for worse, Alice has always been able to do exactly that. Alice x Ace.
1. Chapter 1

Alice hadn't done anything to deserve this. She'd only offered to help. And it hadn't even been a sincere offer, at that –which Blood damn well knew and chose to ignore. She was more than slightly tempted to kick the last pile of boxes across the cafeteria. Instead, she picked them up and began waddling (which is really all she could do to move when carrying three boxes that likely weighed more than the car her older sister had lent her for the weekend) towards the door which she swore she had propped open.

If this day got much worse she would kill someone. Preferably Blood, the asshole who had gotten her into this mess. _He_ had been assigned to moving the boxes. _He_ was the one who had gotten himself into detention, and he should've been the one to serve out his punishment. But she'd gone and sarcastically offered her services, and Blood, who knew just how to manipulate the situation, had informed Elliot. And Elliot had been _so happy_ that he didn't need to do it and could attend his championship in god knows what, that Alice hadn't the heart to refuse.

At least, she hadn't at the time. Had she know how much trouble it would have been, she would have refused no matter _how much_ Elliot had looked like an overjoyed puppy.

Kicking open the door the art classroom Alice set down the precariously large stack of boxes and headed over to the wardrobe that was supposed to be the art cabinet but had never housed anything until today.

She opened the doors and _screamed_.

Two red eyes shone out of the wardrobe, and as she watched a creature unfurl itself from the darkness of the wardrobe.

"Shh I'm hiding."

"Ace?" Alice hissed. She was torn between shouting every foul word she knew and sinking down in relief. "What the actual hell are you doing in the wardrobe? You don't even take art!"

"Like I said, I'm hiding." He sounded so damn reasonable, but he was curled up into a space that was obviously too small for him, and she had a brief flash of amusement as she wondered whether or not he was capable of removing himself from the wardrobe without breaking something.

She tried not to smile. "Why? From what?"

"The wrestling club was having a hide-and-seek contest." Ace explained.

"Which ended an hour ago." Alice added wickedly. "So why are you still here?"

"No one's found me yet."

She gave him an appraising glance. "You just can't get out."

"Yeah?" Ace challenged, waving his one free arm as if it was proof he could leave the wardrobe at any time.

"Yeah."

"I am fully capable of removing myself from the wardrobe. I simply choose not to." Ace grinned cheerfully.

"Then please do so."

"Aw, you don't need to be so worried. I'll be out when I feel like it. Your concern over me has been touching, however."

"How about you come out now. And I'm not worried about you; I need to put these boxes away and you're in the way." Alice crossed her arms and waited, her smile getting bigger and bigger as she waited for him to move. _This is what you get from hiding in a wardrobe, you overgrown child._

He didn't reply.

Then there was the cracking of wood, and two of the drawers that had previously been supporting Ace were gone, and he was one the ground in front of her, smiling. Alice looked from Ace to the wardrobe and back to Ace.

"You broke my storage." Alice groaned. "Now what am I supposed to do?"

"We could pretend it had nothing to do with you, and let the responsibility fall directly on Blood's lap, where it belongs." Ace suggested cheerfully, already dragging Alice out the door. "After that, we could grab dinner."

Alice snickered. "That's wicked. I like it."

"And dinner?"

"Only if you're buying."

"I can think of several other things I could buy." Ace gave a suggestive wink.

"Maybe you should start with my silence, Narnia Boy."


	2. Chapter 2

Alice knew the moment she started the day by falling out of bed that it wasn't going to be a good day. When she tried to stand up she somehow managed to simultaneously hit her head on the corner of her desk and step in yesterday's cereal bowl, sending milk and cheerios over her carpet. The bowl, of course, shattered. She sat back down on the ground, somewhat dazed, landed in the milk, and received a glass shard in her thigh. She wondered, vaguely, if it was worth the trouble of getting up. It was one of those days.

She knew that it was not going to be a good day, and she still stubbornly insisted on going to school, perhaps because she had taken the fact that she had not burned herself cooking breakfast as a sign that her bad luck had passed. She was, as usual, woefully and utterly wrong. She realized her mistake when she entered the school and was greeted by a decidedly ticked boy in a rather unfortunate hat. Elliot, as usual, was behind him. At least _he_ didn't look mad.

She _wanted_ to go around Blood, but revised her course when she realized he had no intention of letting her pass. It was already bad enough, and she did not want the added humiliation –and trouble- of being physically restrained. He smiled in a way that would have looked sweet if you hadn't known him. No, Alice decided, this was not her day.

"Care to explain yourself?"

She returned his smiled and tried to keep her eyes from darting here and there like a cornered animal. She'd read somewhere that acting confident could trick the other party into believing you were right. I sounded like something her sister would have told her while studying for her psych final, but it wasn't like things could get worse.

She opened her mouth and channeled the person who had announced once, with a touch of pride, that the house was burning down around his ears. "In no way do I-"

"I accept no responsibility and I would definitely do it again." A voice announced from directly behind her.

Apparently she had channeled Ace too hard.

"You – do you have any idea what you did?" Blood was struggling to keep his voice level.

"I have done nothing that I should have to apologize for." Ace declared with a confidence that would inspire those who didn't know him to follow his lead. Alice thought of the wardrobe and almost argued. But, she rationalized, it's not like it was ever _used_ , so really it wouldn't be missed. And if it was there were only a few drawers that had been broken. Nothing that couldn't be fixed.

" _I_ ," Blood paused for dramatic effect, "have to stay and fix the thing that you broke. I have to sacrifice my precious time because of your mistakes. Don't you feel even a little guilty?"

"No." Ace said decidedly.

Alice shrugged. "You should probably use duct tape." She grinned wickedly and added, "You know what they say –it fixes everything."

Elliot looked mildly horrified at her suggestion. "Duct tape? Alice, it's _mahogany_! You can't –you don't –I don't even know where to start!" He snorted derisively and muttered, "Duct tape."

Blood had half-turned and looked ready to explain to Elliot that no, Alice hadn't really recommended that they use duct tape, and had he ever heard of _sarcasm,_ when Alice decided that his momentary distraction was the perfect opportunity to avoid making the already bad situation worse. She stepped around him and managed two steps in the general direction of her locker when she felt an arm around her.

"That was a close one, wasn't it~. Glad we dodged that bullet, huh?" Ace said, apparently oblivious to her shoving at his arm.

"You know, with you, a little less honesty could go a long way." She gave up on pushing at his arm and settled for an uncomfortably quick walking pace.

"Ehhh? I'm not honest at all, you know~."

Alice made a noncommittal noise and an abrupt turn to her locker. She was almost dragged off her feet when Ace took another step. To her great satisfaction, he removed his arm.

"You know, if you don't start walking you're going to miss your next class." Alice said, removing her books and pointedly avoiding looking at the boy behind her.

"There's still twenty minutes 'till the beginning of class, you know?"

"With your sense of direction it takes a good thirty to get there. Better start running."

"You could just walk me there and save me the trouble of looking."

"No."

"Please?"

Alice chose not the grace this with a reply, and walked into her classroom, closing the door quietly, but firmly, behind her. She was greeted by her classmates – _all_ of her classmates- giving her looks of pity. It was then that she remembered that she had been scheduled to come in early to begin her in-class essay. She almost groaned.

She had to have pissed off some supernatural being yesterday. It was the only explanation. Maybe it had lived in the wardrobe? In that case it probably would have followed Ace instead.

Shockingly, she made it through the rest of school without anything terrible happening to her. She had managed to finish her assigned reading at lunch, and no one –not even Ace- had disturbed her. She thought she was free to go home and avoid company for the rest of the day when she heard the teacher ask her to help carry the newly arrived student commons furniture up to the second floor.

She had begun to walk towards him, forming half-hearted excused that would certainly remain unused, when Ace cheerfully walked up beside her.

"Sorry, Miss, but Alice is already helping me today –we've got a study date. Do you mind asking someone else if they can help? Thanks!" Without waiting for a reply from either of them, he grabbed her hand and was off.

"What was that?" Alice whispered, not entirely happy with this turn of events. An evening carrying boxes was far from ideal, but an evening with Ace was on one of two extremes: cheerfully inoffensive or utterly suicidal.

"I stretched the truth to get you out of carrying boxes two days in a row."

"You didn't stretch the truth, you lied outright. Thank you, by the way." She felt that she ought to thank him, regardless of whether or not she had desired this turn of events.

"Well, we could change that if you want."

" _You're_ going to study?" Alice raised an eyebrow in challenge.

"Well, no. I was thinking we could go on a date, though."

It took her a moment to remember to breathe and another to formulate a passable reply. "Oh." She managed. Maybe today wasn't so bad, after all.

Ace gave her an expectant look.

"I mean, um. Sure. What were you thinking?"

"Meet me at the station at five."

She gave a weak smile. "What'll we be doing?"

He smiled. She knew that that meant nothing good, and she tried asking again.

"At five, remember. Don't wear anything too fancy, it'll get dirty." He gave her another smile, "Oh, this is my train! See you at five~."

"Ace wai-"The train door closed and she saw him giving an enthusiastic wave from the windows. "That's not your train, dumbass."

She was at the station at five. Ace was not. She was still at the station at six. Ace was not. At six thirty, she went looking for him. At seven thirty she gave up. The city was big, he wasn't answering his phone, and it was getting dark. She turned into another alley to try and get back to the station.

There was a brief moment when she was unsure what had happened, and then she was on the ground, looking up into a pair of red eyes.

"Why, hello there Alice~. What on earth are you doing down there?" Ace offered her a hand up, "Ah! I know! You got lost on your way to the station too! Don't be embarrassed, it's quiet difficult to find. But if you take a left and then another left and walk for a few more blocks you should get there fine."

"No, I was out looking for you." She didn't bother to point out that his direction would take you in the exact opposite direction.

"Ah! I'm so sorry for being late. There was this cat, you see, and… would you still like to go?"

"Only if you tell me what we're doing first."

He smiled. "In that case, we're going hiking. I packed food, so you don't need to worry on that account."

"Hiking?" Alice asked suspiciously.

"It's not that difficult to get to –there aren't any roads, but I found a really nice spot by the lake, and if we hurry we'll be able to see the moonrise."

Upon hearing the words 'no roads', Alice immediately resigned herself to an evening of something that toed the line between unsafe and lethal. "It sounds lovely, Ace."

It was, much to her surprise and Ace's satisfaction, lovely.


	3. Chapter 3

The third time Alice found him was an accident. She had just wanted coffee. It wasn't an outrageous demand, and it certainly wasn't impossible to find without running into your classmate. Normally. She wasn't _avoiding_ them, per se, but it certainly wasn't her intention or desire to run into them. Since she had the car anyways, she went out of her way to drive to the Starbucks on the very edge of town.

Her decision to come to this Starbucks in particular had nothing whatsoever to do with the fact that she knew it was by Ace's house. Nothing at all. It wasn't as if she had plans to bring him a croissant, and it certainly wasn't as if she wanted an excuse to see him after last night's date.

She just liked the atmosphere of this Starbucks in particular. Yes, she liked the way that the… it had a certain… there were many reasons that she could have liked it! And none of those reasons had anything to do with a certain red-eyed boy. Absolutely nothing to do with him and the possibility that she could see him if she found the courage to deliver a croissant.

Ha! As if!

Alice rounded a corner a few blocks from the Starbucks and promptly slammed on the brakes.

The car, though still in relatively good condition, protested such an action. Loudly.

She wasn't going to stop in time.

Red eyes met hers through the windshield, and then vanished.

She closed her eyes, felt the car slide to a stop, and prayed that she had not seen what she thought she had seen. At least, she thought, she had not felt a bump. Had not, in fact, felt anything at all after the initial jolt of stopping.

Encouraged by this though, Alice opened her eyes just a crack and gingerly stepped out of the car. There did not appear to be a person (or what remained of a person) under her car. There was no one in front of her car. The street was completely deserted. She could have sworn that she had seen-

"BOO!"

Alice yelped, stumbled, and fell directly onto the pavement that she had been examining for possible sings of a vaporized human.

"What-" She tried, her voice breaking in the middle of the word. "What the hell did you think you were doing?!"

"Oh, don't be like that, Alice. I was just crossing the road."

"Just -just -just crossing the road?" Alice spluttered. She looked him over, checking for any sign of injury.

"Yes." Said Ace.

Her eyes narrowed and her teeth clenched. _So this was how it was going to be._ "You were 'just crossing the road' when the sign indicated -very clearly! – that it was my right of way? You were 'just crossing the road'? Hmm? You could have gotten yourself killed, you complete idiot!"

"Nah, I rolled out of the way in time." He grinned, and then changed the subject. "What're you doing all the way up here, Alice? I thought your house was on the other side of the city?"

She felt her cheeks warm up, and tried to convince herself that it was the anger. "Don't you dare try and change the subject on me! You nearly got yourself killed!"

Ace whistled, spinning around to look at his surroundings. "Well, since you feel that bad about it, you could treat me to Starbucks. There's one around here."

 _Oh. Oh, he did not just –_ " You nearly got yourself run over with my car, and you're inviting me to treat you? Think again!"

"What? Alice, are you mad? It's not your fault, don't worry -you had a turning light!"

"I -you -this -I KNOW I HAD RIGHT OF WAY THAT'S WHY I'M MAD!" She would not stomp her foot. She would _not._

"So I take it you're not going to treat me to Starbucks."

"No." If Alice clenched her teeth any more, she was certain that they would shatter.

"Well, then, it's decided!" Ace said cheerfully, sitting himself down in the driver's seat and adjusting the mirrors.

" _Excuse_ me? What's decided?" Outrage and confusion vied for dominance.

"Since you won't treat me, I'll treat you~." Ace grinned at her from the driver's seat, one hand slung over the wheel.

" _What?_ No. No one is treating anyone -you're going home -or better yet to the hospital!" Alice said, clenching her fists in frustration. Then, with sudden clarity, she grasped the severity of the situation. Ace was sitting in her sister's car. With the keys. Her sister's car, which she had _promised_ to return without a scratch on it. Not a _scratch._ "What are you doing? Get out of my car! Hey!"

"Don't worry~. I'm a good driver."

"Do you even have your license?"

"You should get in the passenger's seat."

"Do you have your license?" Alice asked again, panic rising in her throat.

"Of course -I would never get you in trouble driving without one. See?"

Swallowing her trepidation, Alice stepped into the car. When he set his mind to something, there was only one way that it ended -with him getting what he wanted. Resigned to her fate, she gave him a reproachful glare as she fastened her seatbelt. "If you scratch my sister's car, you're paying for rushed repairs before she gets back."

The car lurched forwards. She hoped that this wasn't a sign of what was to come. "Like I said, I'm a good driver."

"Okay." Said Alice, entirely unconvinced. "Turn left at the next intersection."

"Gotcha."

"Turn left." A pause. "Ace, turn left. Turn left! No, wait -your other left. No. Hey!"

"Sorry~. But there's a shortcut if we just-"

"No."

"We could maybe-"

"No."

"If I just-"

"We're going around the block. You're going to listen to my directions, or I'm getting out of the car and reporting it as stolen."

"That's not a very nice thing to do~." Ace whined.

"I haven't been a nice person, right from the very start." Alice retorted. "Turn right."

Ace was not, as he had said, a good driver. In fact, Alice was beginning to wonder if his style of 'driving' had anything at all to do with hers. But he did not so much as touch the paint of the car, and really, that was all Alice needed.

They reached a Starbucks in a record thirty minutes. Not the Starbucks that they(Alice) had initially intended on going to, and certainly not the one they(Alice) had been getting directions to, but a Starbucks nonetheless.

They sat at a table near the entrance, Alice tentatively sipping her mocha while Ace stared intently into his latte, as if it would reveal the secrets of the universe if he looked at it in just the right way.

Alice smiled at the crease between his eyebrows. "Penny for your thoughts?"

And suddenly, his face bloomed into a smile. "Alice, I like you a latte."

She could feel the heat rising in her cheeks. "It must be hard with your sense of direction, never being able to find your way to a decent pickup line."

 _I like you the mocha._

 ** _Author's Notes:_**

I'm so so so sorry. It's been a year. I'm so sorry.


End file.
